In an age where lifestyle design is possible, the most important questions to ask yourself is what, when and how? We can live anywhere, do anything, be with anyone…

Start thinking differently. Gain a different perspective.

Creating the life that you want can often be a tough task. But it doesn’t have to be. Having a happier and more fulfilling life can be achieved by changing the way you approach your lifestyle design. Lifestyle design methods of the past are outdated and flawed. Unfortunately, they have become accepted as the only way – primarily out of routine. For some people this way still works. But, for most, I don’t think it does. Instead, it has bred generations of unfulfilled people. Things have changed, our way of thinking needs to as well.

So what is the problem?

The problem is that the way we design our lives is backwards – we find a job, then we build a career then we figure out based on the resources we have (read: time and money) what type of lifestyle can we lead.

What is the cause of this problem?

The cause is rooted in the way we are brought through our education system. We are all taught to go to school, to get good grades so we can get into a good college, to get a college degree so when we graduate we can get a good paying job. Once we get that job, what’s next? We grind at that job so we get promotions and 3% raises every year, so that in 40 years we can retire. That is how our system is designed. I won’t say this is wrong – I’m just challenging it. In many ways it has to be this way because you can’t have 300 million people doing their own thing. There needs to be a system and there needs to be cohesiveness. But the real question is this: is that the lifestyle you want? Is falling in line what’s best for you? It depends. What lifestyle do you want?

What is a viable solution to the lifestyle design problem?

The underlying issue is in the order we design our lives. As outlined above we think – job > career > lifestyle. What we need to do is flip that around and think – lifestyle > career > job. What lifestyle do you want to lead? What career would support this? What job can you get now that will get you there? Think of the labor system as a resource, which will help you to create the lifestyle you want.

This may not seem like a big deal, but give this a try. I mean really think about what life you want to lead. What does a perfect day in your life look like? Get specific. What time do you want to wake up? What do you want to eat for breakfast? How many hours a day do you want to work? How many vacations do you want to take? Where do you want to live? The questions can be endless but when you really start answering them honestly you may find that what you’re doing doesn’t support your desired lifestyle at all. If it doesn’t, it then becomes a matter of finding (or creating) the job that does support your desired lifestyle.

Viewing your life in this manner can be one of the most powerful mindset shifts you can make. The important part of this is that you are taking control. Demand from your job and career what your lifestyle needs and like water carving out a path down a hill your career (the hill) will eventually conform to your lifestyle (the water).

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I could make a few different comments about the posted video this week, but I’ll stick with the most obvious.

It’s about focus.

It’s about work ethic.

It’s about wanting it more.

It’s about stopping at nothing until you get what you want.

It’s that fire that burns inside of you that continues to burn no matter what happens.

And you have to listen to that internal fire. You have to block out everything else around you and let that fire fuel your life. The man in this video is letting his fire light his way towards a clearly defined goal. That goal is also very important to have. Without that vision or goal, you’re just throwing darts in the dark. You’re navigating a ship at night with no compass and no map.

Sometimes it takes time to define your vision. But you have to continue to be your best day in and day out and believe that if you do the right things and you are the best person that you can possibly be every day, in every moment, at every opportunity that you are presented with, then you will find your way and you will become your vision.

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“Every man I meet is my superior in some way. In that, I learn of him.”

That should probably be one of the Ten Commandments. It’s true, everybody is good at something… some people are good at business, some people are good listeners, some people are good at seizing opportunities and some people are good at sitting on the couch wasting their life in front of a television. The key is to recognize that you can learn from every one of these people. First step is to change your mindset. Don’t just think, “that person is a great listener”, instead think, “why is that person such a great listener?” When you know the “why” it opens up the doors to possessing those qualities too. If it’s a quality you want to have, aspire to learn more about how they got so good and then do more of it. If it’s a quality you don’t want, you still have to recognize how they got so good at it, the only difference is instead of doing more of it, you have to do much, much less of it!

Recognize that if you want to be the best version of yourself, which I can envision no reason why you wouldn’t want to be, then you must constantly learn. You can learn from everything in your life, it just depends on how you view your world. See what people do well and see what people don’t do so well. Why are they so good? Why do they suck? That knowledge, in and of itself, is probably worth more than the money you spent on your college degree. And it’s FREE! Everyone can do it! You just have to change your perception of the world around you. Ohh, and you have to ask lots of “why’s”!

So for every person you interact with today you have to ask yourself the question, “what can I learn from them?”

Does it depend on the day? The week? The month? Or the year? Is it the part during your big meeting? Is it the part during your big presentation? Is it the part during your big date? Does the most important part of your day change? Do you even have a most important part of your day?!

If you’re lost here’s your answer:

The most important part of your day is the first 20 minutes after you wake up.

Why?

Because how you start your day sets the tone for the rest of your day. Starting your day off right prepares you both mentally and physically to face your challenges with a clear mind. It also prepares you to be at your best for everything you do and everyone you interact with. Have you ever noticed that if your day gets off to a bad start, that feeling just seems to fester the rest of the day? You may feel like your just drifting through the day – you’re less focused and less productive. Compare that with a day that gets off to a great start. Big difference, right?

Most people wake up and just start running at 100 mph because that’s what you have to do to get everything done, but you never take stock in what you actually want to accomplish that day. And you never put yourself in the right mindset to accomplish those things. You just start going and hope that you get everything you need to get done, done. But you never do, do you? And why do you think that is? I’ll tell you why. It’s because you never prepared for the day. You never had a purpose, a goal, or a direction for what the hell you were doing. You just woke up and started going, but unfortunately you didn’t have a clear vision of where it is that you wanted to end up. That is a big problem. It is probably why you often hear people say, “life goes fast!” or “where did the last three years go?” or “I don’t know how I gained all this weight!” or “oh, what I would do to be in my twenties again!”

All of those statements tell me one thing – you never prepared for the days, weeks, months and years of your life and subsequently it all just drifted right by you. Now you look back in bewilderment as you try to piece together a puzzle that was created in the dark.

How you start has everything to do with how you will finish. So start your days right. Wake up 20 minutes earlier and have time to sit in a quiet place and prepare for your day. Here are five ways you can do this:

Read a positive, thought-provoking quote and then figure out how you will apply it to your life for the day.

Write out your action list for the day then go back and number each item from most important to least important. Start with number one.

Listen to music and just zone out. Put on your favorite song that will help you relax then just space out for a little bit. Let your mind drift and not focus on anything in particular. It’s sort of like meditation but personal experience has taught me that listening to a good song on repeat does more than sitting in silence.

Read a few pages of a book that will improve your mindset. I created a short list HERE of recommended books to read.

Write freely. Open up a word document and just start writing. Get everything on your mind out on digital paper. It doesn’t matter what comes out or what it sounds like or how many grammatical errors you make. Just write. Done with consistency you will be amazed at how clear your mind will become and how much better you will get at finding solutions to life’s obstacles.

Pick one of those action items and start making a 20-minute, $10,000 investment in yourself today. It’s an investment that will always have a positive return.

Happy Wednesday!

(Chad)

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“I once succumbed to the fad of fasting and went for six days and nights without eating. It wasn’t difficult. I was less hungry at the end of the sixth day than I was at the end of the second. Yet I know, as you know, people who would think they had committed a crime if they let their families or employees go for six days without food; but they will let them go for six days, and six weeks, and sometimes sixty years without giving them the hearty appreciation that they crave almost as much as they crave food.”

This excerpt is taken from How to Win Friends & Influence People by Dale Carnegie. It should be a reminder to not forget why you’re here and what really matters. A reminder to show your appreciation for everything that you have. It is far too easy to lose sight of who you are and all the great things you have in your life, so take time to reflect and appreciate those things. Invest time with the people who you are closest to. Make it your goal to leave those around you feeling better than they did when you arrived. Pay them a compliment. It will make you feel good and it will make them feel good too. Put your positive energy in the air.